On January 4th I moved into an empty apartment. Well actually, it wasn't completely empty. It had a fridge, a gas burner, and some light bulbs. The apartment below is in fact the same apartment, but it has now been lived in for about four months. Due to the temporary nature of the job at the end of the school year in March, I was careful not to get too comfortable my first three months. However, since I officially found out I'll be staying here for a full-year, I figured I'd make some adjustments for comfort and convenience. There are probably still quite a few things I could buy, but I can't think of too much that I really need. I consider all of my space a precious thing as well. In fact, I have an entire extra room I use for storing rarely-used school materials, random musical instruments, and information packets kindly given to me by the city's waste management organization. I didn't really feel like taking any pictures of that room, but I did take some of the others.
This first picture is of my bedroom. It has a floor of tatami mats, which are traditional mats made of rice straw. It's a very nice play to be, which is why I elect to sleep in there.
My kitchen is the place I want to add the most to, as my stomach will reap the benefits handsomely. I have made do with what I have pretty well. My staples have been pasta, curry, rice, ramen experiments, omelets, and toast. I don't eat that much meat, since I usually screw it up and would rather keep things simple. I have somehow managed to put garlic and olive oil into almost everything I cook, and am not sick of it yet. Eggplant, tomatoes, carrots, and spinach have also been regulars.
This is my living room, and just a few steps from the kitchen. Having my computer so close to the kitchen allows me to listen to radio shows or music while cooking and eating. I have been hooked on the show Radio Lab lately, and recommend it to anyone who hasn't listened to it. I don't have much, but space is gradually being taken up more and more. Two months without a guitar to fool around on was tough, but I did make slightly more progress in my books during that time. In terms of moving into an empty apartment, filling my suitcase with stacks of books and photos wasn't too practical. Four months later, their practicality has even surpassed the expectations I had when I packed them.
As you may have noticed, I am still learning how to plan out and organize an apartment. Let me know if you have any suggestions for set-up or things to buy, since I'll admit that I don't even know what it is I don't know yet.
